Julianna Grace

Here are a few pictures of my new niece, Julianna Grace Murray. Julianna was born today at 12:25 p.m. She weighed 7lbs, 15oz and was 21.5 inches long. I am so blessed to have THREE awesome nieces!

Swim Lessons

Olivia began taking swim lessons last month at the YMCA. She loves going to swim practice. On the first day of the session, all of the kids were tested and put into levels. Every kid in her class was a "pike"- which is the absolute lowest level. Olivia worked hard throughout the month and mastered all of the pike-level skills. On the last day of the session, the kids were given medals and Olivia was promoted to "eel". Only two of the five kids were promoted, so Olivia was really excited. The next session of swimming lessons doesn't begin until October, but I'm pretty sure that we are going to continue. Olivia loves it and is making good progress. Here are some pictures of Olivia with her class and with her instructors Mrs. Krystial and Mrs. Rachel.

Owen's Favorite Song

Ladies and Gentlemen: For you entertainment, I present the "Winnie the Pooh" theme song. Performed by Owen Sanders.

Time to "Du" Something New

Last Saturday I participated in the Megan's House Heels and Wheels Duathlon. A duathlon is a run-bike-run event. This particular duathlon had me run 2 miles, bike 13, and then run 2 more miles. I've been thinking about branching out into cycling for awhile, and I'm glad that I finally made the leap. I'm not going to lie, I was more than a little nervous about the biking portion of the race. Thankfully, when I pulled up to the event Mat Boatright (my friend Carrie's husband) was there and he really helped me out a lot. He double checked the air in my tires, showed me how to set my bike up in the transition area, and explained to me everything that I needed to know. I felt so much better after talking to him. The race began, and I started off pretty good. I ran at my max pace for the first two miles, and I transitioned with no problem.... And then there was the bike ride (sigh). Let's just say that it was obviously my first biking event. I did make it through the ride though. The only thing left to do was run two more miles, which I did but with more difficulty than the first two. I finished with a time of 1:28:37, which isn't terrible for a first try. I really enjoyed this event. The biking was a nice complement to the running, and I am hoping to pursue more events that incorporate it.

Olivia "TRI"es Something New

Olivia Sanders: Pre-K student, future princess, and now- triathlete. This morning Olivia took part in the "SuperKids Triathlon" sponsored by the YMCA. Even though we do foot races quite a bit in the Sanders family, no one has ever attempted a triathlon. So I guess this means that Olivia is the only triathlete in the family- until next year, that is, then Owen will be old enough to do this event too. The race began at 8:30. Before the race started, we had to check in at the registration table. My good friend (and Olivia's swimming teacher), Krystial, was the one manning the table. Krystial used a water-proof marker to write Olivia's division number on her leg. This, I have learned, is common practice in swimming events as a paper number would likely get wet or wash off. After checking in, Brian and I got busy setting everything up for the event. Brian took Olivia's biking gear down to the designated area while I set Olivia's clothes up in the transition area.





The race began on time, and Olivia was in the first heat. The first portion of the triathlon was the swimming. The kids in the four-year-old division had to swim the length of the pool. This was actually the part that I was the most nervous about. Turns out, there was nothing to fear. Olivia did great. Of course she had to use a flotation belt, but she has been using this in her swim class and so she had no problem with it. She said that the swimming was her favorite portion of the triathlon.

After the swimming portion, we moved to the transition area. Here, we helped Olivia dry off a bit and we put some shorts, socks, and shoes on her. We then made our way to the bike area and helped Olivia get her helmet on. The kids in her division had to ride a half mile on the bike. I never noticed it before, but Olivia's bike is way too small for her. It was much smaller than the other kids' bikes, and she had to pedal much harder to go as fast as they did. I know she had to be really tired during the bike portion, but she never complained or gave up.

After the biking portion of the race was over, it was time for Olivia to run a quarter mile. She did pretty good with the running. Brian ran with her, and she also got lots of support from her "cheering section"- which consisted of me, Owen, my parents, and Sam. At the finish line, she received a medal and lots of love. The event was not timed, so everyone was a winner. I'm not going to lie- I was impressed with the way that Olivia persevered throughout the race. Of course, she was exhausted in the afternoon and took a fairly long nap.

...And after all of the excitement of the triathlon in the morning, I was just itching to do a race myself. Fortunately, there was a 5K in Waycross in the p.m. I finished the Harvest Run 5K with a time of 26.25 (happy with it) and placed first in my age group (not the only contestant). Whew- this has been a busy day. Now to prepare for next weekend when I "du" (hint) something new myself.

Olivia's First Day of Pre-K

Today was Olivia's first day of Pre-K. She is attending a state-funded program that is located in the same building where Owen goes to daycare. Olivia reports that she had a fantastic first day. She learned about flowers, books, and the sound that "ew" makes. She is so excited about this school year. Here are some of the pictures that I took this morning before taking the kids to school/daycare.

Beach 2011: The Year of the Boogie Board

We had a wonderful beach trip with my family on Amelia Island this year. As usual, we rented condos at Amelia-by-the-Sea. The weather was perfect all week long. We spent our days on the beach and at the pool. Granny Mel was able to come for a few days and enjoy the beautiful weather with us. Brian and Kelly bought boogie boards for the kids early in the week, and the girls really took to it- especially Ava. Unfortunately, Brian wasn't able to stay the whole week because of work. I hated that he couldn't stay, and so did he. Below are my favorite pictures from the week.